Toy phonograph apparatus

Abstract

An improved toy phonograph of the type in which a pickup arm is pivoted at one end and is engageable with a playing surface of a first phonograph record rotatably mounted on one side of the turntable, with a first spring urging the pickup arm toward the periphery of the phonograph record and with a first speaker cone means resiliently mounted on the housing of the phonograph record above the pickup arm and having a lift bar means removably engageable with the pickup arm in sound reproducing contact, includes an arrangement for resiliently pressing the pickup arm into engagement with the phonograph record for reproducing recorded sounds from the phonograph record playing surface during rotation of the turntable, with this pressing arrangement substantially uniformly resiliently biasing the lift bar against the pickup arm with a substantially uniform biasing force for exerting substantially uniform pressure on the pickup arm needle throughout the entire path of travel circumscribed by the needle across the phonograph record playing surface from the periphery towards the center during such sound reproducing engagement. This pressing arrangement comprises a bifurcated spring member resiliently pressing against the lift bar at a pair of spaced apart positions therealong and further includes another spring resiliently pressing against the bifurcated spring member for enabling adjustment of the biasing force provided by the bifurcated spring member as a result of adjustment of the biasing force of the other spring. This improved toy phonograph may be used in either a single play or continuous play arrangement with the substantially uniform pressure on the lift bar ensuring positive shut-off in the single play arrangement.

What is claimed is: 
     
       1. In a toy phonograph comprising a housing, said housing comprising a base, a turntable rotatably mounted on said base for rotation about an axis of rotation, a first phonograph record rotatably mounted to one side of said turntable for rotation therewith, said phonograph record having a periphery and a center, a first pickup arm pivoted at one end and having a needle means engageable with a playing surface of said first phonograph record, a first spring means, said first pickup arm being constantly placed under a force of said first spring means which urges said first pickup arm toward the periphery of said first phonograph record and a first speaker cone means resiliently mounted on said housing above said first pickup arm, said first speaker cone means comprising a first lift bar means removably engageable with said first pickup arm in sound reproducing contact; the improvement comprising means for resiliently pressing said first pickup arm needle means into engagement with said first phonograph record for reproducing recorded sound from said first phonograph record playing surface during rotation of said turntable, said pickup arm needle means circumscribing a path of travel across said first phonograph record playing surface from said periphery toward said center during said sound reproducing engagement, said pressing means comprising second spring means, said second spring means comprising a bifurcated spring member resiliently pressing against said lift bar means at a pair of spaced apart positions therealong, one of said positions being located substantially adjacent said phonograph record periphery and the other of said positions being located substantially adjacent said center, whereby said bifurcated spring member presses against said lift bar means substantially adjacent the limits of said path of travel of said pickup arm needle means for substantially uniformly resiliently biasing said lift bar means against said first pickup arm with a substantially uniform biasing force for exerting substantially uniform pressure on said needle means throughout said entire path of travel circumscribed by said needle means. 
     
     
       2. An improved toy phonograph in accordance with claim 1 wherein said bifurcated spring member comprises a substantially U-shaped spring member. 
     
     
       3. An improved toy phonograph in accordance with claim 1 wherein said pressing means further comprises third spring means having an adjustable biasing force, said third spring means resiliently biasing said second spring means against said lift bar means with said adjustable biasing force for adjustably varying said substantially uniform biasing force. 
     
     
       4. An improved toy phonograph in accordance with claim 1 wherein said bifurcated member comprises a base portion and a pair of spaced apart arm portions, said bifurcated member being connected to said housing at said base portion. 
     
     
       5. An improved toy phonograph in accordance with claim 4 wherein said bifurcated member base portion is connected to said housing at only one point of connection. 
     
     
       6. An improved toy phonograph in accordance with claim 1 wherein said toy phonograph further comprises a first cam means axially mounted on said turntable axis of rotation and fixedly rotatable therewith, a second cam means nestable with said first cam means for rotation therewith when in nested engagement therewith, said second cam means being a floating cam means comprising at least one lower peripheral cam surface sloped with respect to said turntable, said first cam means having at least one congruent upper peripheral cam surface nestable with said second cam means at least one lower peripheral cam surface, third spring means resiliently urging said second floating cam means at least one lower peripheral cam surface into nesting engagement with said first cam means at least one upper peripheral cam surface, said second floating cam means comprising a first protrusion extending outwardly therefrom beneath said speaker cone means parallel to said phonograph record playing surface and being normally biased out of engagement with said speaker cone means by said third spring means, said pickup arm comprising a second protrusion extending upwardly therefrom substantially normal to said phonograph record playing surface and being pivotally movable with said pickup arm, said lift bar means enabling said speaker cone means to be urged out of engagement with said pickup arm by said second cam means as said nestable cam surfaces are driven out of nesting engagement, said second spring means resiliently urging said lift bar means into supporting contact with said pickup arm second protrusion, said lift bar means comprising a third protrusion extending downwardly therefrom substantially normal to said phonograph record playing surface and normally disposable above said rotating first protrusion when said lift bar means is in said supporting contact with said pickup arm second protrusion, said lift bar means further comprising an aperture for receiving said second protrusion therein, said second protrusion being pivotally movable with said pickup arm, said lift bar means aperture being located above said phonograph record adjacent the end of said phonograph record recording, said second protrusion being receivable in said lift bar means aperture when said pickup arm is adjacent the end of said phonograph record recording for enabling said resiliently urged lift bar means to drop a sufficient amount in the direction of said phonograph record to enable said first and third protrusions to become engageable for halting rotation of said second floating cam means when said pickup arm is adjacent the end of said phonograph record recording, said turntable and said first cam means still being rotatable when said first and third protrusions are in engagement, said rotating first cam means at least one upper peripheral cam surface being driven out of nesting engagement with said second cam means at least one lower peripheral cam surface during rotation of said turntable when said first and third protrusions are in engagement, said second cam means at least one sloped lower peripheral cam surface rising up said at least one sloped first peripheral cam surface as said cam surfaces are driven out of said nesting engagement to enable sufficient contact of said second cam means with said speaker cone means to overcome said second spring means biasing force and urge said speaker cone means out of engagement with said pickup arm to raise said lift bar means aperture above said second protrusion and enable said pickup arm to be resiliently reset to the periphery of said phonograph record by said first spring means while returning said lift bar means to said supporting contact with said pickup arm second protrusion, thereby disengaging said first and third protrusions. 
     
     
       7. An improved toy phonograph in accordance with claim 6 wherein said first cam means comprises a pair of said congruent nestable upper peripheral cam surfaces spaced apart from each other, and said second cam means comprises a corresponding pair of said sloped lower peripheral cam surfaces with each of said pair of upper peripheral cam surfaces being nestable in a corresponding one of said pair of sloped lower peripheral cam surfaces, both of said sloped lower peripheral cam surfaces substantially simultaneously rising up said corresponding sloped first peripheral cam surfaces as said cam surfaces are driven out of said nesting engagement for providing a distributed upward lift force for said speaker cone means for urging said speaker cone means out of engagement with said pickup arm. 
     
     
       8. An improved toy phonograph in accordance with claim 7 wherein each of said pairs of cam surfaces are substantially 180° apart for providing a substantially equal distributed lift force for said speaker cone means. 
     
     
       9. An improved toy phonograph in accordance with claim 8 wherein said upper peripheral cam surfaces of said pair thereof are substantially mirror images of each other and said lower peripheral cam surfaces of said pair thereof are substantially mirror images thereof. 
     
     
       10. An improved toy phonograph in accordance with claim 7 wherein said housing comprises an overhang portion parallel to said phonograph record and located adjacent the end of said phonograph record recording between said lift bar means and said phonograph record, said overhang portion being spaced above said phonograph record playing surface a sufficient amount for enabling said pickup arm to be removably retained thereunder when said pickup arm second protrusion is received in said lift bar means aperture while substantially enabling said pickup arm to be resiliently reset to the periphery of said phonograph record by said first spring means when said speaker cone means is urged out of engagement with said pickup arm to raise said lift bar means aperture above said second protrusion. 
     
     
       11. An improved toy phonograph in accordance with claim 10 wherein said overhang portion further comprises a stop member substantially normal thereto for stopping said pivotal movement of said pickup arm at the end of said phonograph record recording. 
     
     
       12. An improved toy phonograph in accordance with claim 10 wherein said lift bar means further comprises an extension portion thereof extending out of said housing for enabling manual resilient reset of said pickup arm to the periphery of said phonograph record by said first spring at any position of said pickup arm along said phonograph record playing surface by lifting said extension portion. 
     
     
       13. An improved toy phonograph in accordance with claim 12 wherein said phonograph comprises drive means for rotatably driving said turntable, said drive means having an on and an off state with said turntable only being driven in said on state, said drive means comprising switch means having an on position and an off position for selecting between said on and said off state, respectively, said extension portion being in operative engagement with said switch means and being liftable thereby when said switch means is in said off position, whereby said pickup arm resilient reset is enabled when said drive means is placed in said off state and said phonograph record recording starts at the beginning thereof when said switch means is subsequently placed in said on position for placing said drive means in said on state. 
     
     
       14. An improved toy phonograph in accordance with claim 7 wherein said lift bar means further comprises an extension portion thereof extending out of said housing for enabling manual resilient reset of said pickup arm to the periphery of said phonograph record by said first spring at any position of said pickup arm along said phonograph record playing surface by depressing said extension. 
     
     
       15. An improved toy phonograph in accordance with claim 7 wherein said phonograph comprises drive means for rotatably driving said turntable, said drive means having an on and an off state with said turntable only being driven in said on state, said drive means comprising switch means having an on position and an off position for selecting between said on and said off state, respectively, said extension portion being in operative engagement with said switch means and being depressable thereby when said switch means is in said off position, whereby said pickup arm resilient reset is enabled when said drive means is placed in said off state and said phonograph record recording starts at the beginning thereof when said switch means is subsequently placed in said onposition for placing said drive means in said on state. 
     
     
       16. An improved toy phonograph in accordance with claim 6 wherein said lift bar means further comprises an extension portion thereof extending out of said housing for enabling manual resilient reset of said pickup arm to the periphery of said phonograph record by said first spring means at any position of said pickup arm along said phonograph record playing surface by lifting said extension portion. 
     
     
       17. An improved toy phonograph in accordance with claim 1 wherein said first pickup arm comprises a first protrusion extending upwardly therefrom substantially normal to said first phonograph record playing surface and being pivotally movable with said first pickup arm, said first lift bar means comprising a first aperture for receiving said first protrusion therein, said first lift bar means aperture being located above said first phonograph record adjacent the end of said first phonograph record recording, said first protrusion being receivable in said first lift bar means aperture when said first pickup arm is adjacent the end of said first phonograph record recording for interrupting said reproducing of said recorded sound from said first phonograph record playing surface; drive means for rotatably driving said turntable for enabling said reproducing of said recorded sound from said first phonograph record; and bistate switch means for activating and deactivating said drive means dependent on the state of said switch means, said drive means being activated to rotatably drive said turntable in a first state of said switch means and being deactivated to halt said rotatable drive of said common turntable in a second state of said switch means, said switch means comprising means located between said first phonograph record playing surface and said first lift bar means and being cooperable with said first lift bar means for placing said switch means in said second state when said first pickup arm protrusion is received in said first lift bar means aperture. 
     
     
       18. An improved toy phonograph in accordance with claim 17 wherein said switch means comprises a leaf spring contact switch means comprising a first leaf spring contact and a second contact with said means located between said first phonograph record playing surface and said first lift bar means comprising said first leaf spring contact and being spaced from said first lift bar means out of engagement therewith and in closed circuit engagement with said second contact when said switch means is in said first state, said first leaf spring contact being normally resiliently biased into said closed circuit engagement with a predetermined biasing force, said lift bar means engaging said first leaf spring contact with said first spring biasing force which is in excess of said first leaf spring biasing force for disengaging said first leaf spring contact from said second contact for placing said switch means into said second state when said first pickup arm protrusion is received in said first lift bar means aperture, said second state being an open circuit between said first leaf spring contact and said second contact. 
     
     
       19. An improved toy phonograph in accordance with claim 18 wherein said first lift bar means comprises means for enabling said lift bar aperture to be raised above the first pickup arm protrusion received therein for enabling said pickup arm to be resiliently reset to the periphery of said phonograph record. 
     
     
       20. An improved toy phonograph in accordance with claim 19 wherein said lift bar raising means further disengages said first lift bar means from said first leaf spring contact for enabling said switch to return to said first state. 
     
     
       21. An improved toy phonograph in accordance with claim 19 wherein said lift bar aperture raising enabling means comprises an extension portion of said lift bar means extending out of said housing. 
     
     
       22. An improved toy phonograph in accordance with claim 17 wherein said first lift bar means comprises means for enabling said lift bar aperture to be raised above the first pickup arm protrusion received therein for enabling said pickup arm to be resiliently reset to the periphery of said phonograph record. 
     
     
       23. An improved toy phonograph in accordance with claim 22 wherein said lift bar aperture raising enabling means comprises an extension portion of said lift bar means extending out of said housing. 
     
     
       24. An improved toy phonograph in accordance with claim 23 wherein said first lift bar cooperable switch means is located adjacent said first phonograph record periphery and said lift bar aperture raising enabling means. 
     
     
       25. An improved toy phonograph in accordance with claim 22 wherein said first lift bar cooperable switch means is located adjacent said first phonograph record periphery and said lift bar aperture raising enabling means.